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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23483956">Sleep On the Floor</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/flammable_grimm_pitch/pseuds/flammable_grimm_pitch'>flammable_grimm_pitch</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Gilmore Girls</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Literati, New York City</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 08:27:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,978</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23483956</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/flammable_grimm_pitch/pseuds/flammable_grimm_pitch</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After spending the night with Dean, Rory regrets her decision. She calls the only person she trusts to help her out, and skips Stars Hollow for the summer in an attempt to get her life together.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Rory Gilmore/Jess Mariano</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>58</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Grab Yourself a Toothbrush, Dear</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>If you think I'm not about to write a Literati fic loosely based on the Lumineers song 'Sleep On the Floor,' you have another thing coming to you.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jess awoke with a start and found himself wrapped up in a sweat-soaked bed sheet. Disoriented, he glanced around the room, and found that he was back in the New York apartment he shared with some coworkers. It was as messy as it had been when he had left for his mother’s wedding, but he didn’t care so much about that. Usually, he slept like a log, and not even the constant wail of sirens could wake him before he was ready to get up. Something had woken him up, he was sure of it. One of his roommates was asleep on his own mattress in another corner of the room, and the other two beds were empty because their owners worked the night shift.</p>
<p>
As Jess continued to search for the offending sound or creature, the cellphone in the pocket of his jeans began to buzz and ring. <i>My phone; of course,</i> Jess realized. Someone must have called. He dug through the dirty laundry piled up against the wall and fished out his phone just in time to answer it before it went to voicemail. The front screen read 2:25am. <i>This better be important,</i> he thought, grinding his teeth in annoyance. 
</p><p>
“Hello?” he grunted, not caring to disguise the fatigue in his tone. If someone was going to call him in the middle of the night, they were going to have to deal with him being frustrated about it. He had only been home from Stars Hollow for a day, and already people were getting on his back to cover shifts for them. 
</p><p>
“Jess?” He might have been half-asleep, but he would know that meek voice anywhere. 
</p><p>
“Rory,” he murmured, sitting up on his mattress and leaning against the cold cement wall. “What’s wrong? Are you alright?” Only a day ago, he had been so angry with her that he could barely breathe, but none of that mattered now.
</p><p>
“Jess, I…I messed up really bad,” she sobbed. “I messed up, and I don’t know what to do.” 
</p><p>
“Are you safe? Is anyone hurt?” he asked urgently. His mind was racing with a million different ways she could be in trouble. Memories of the night he had totalled her car flashed behind his eyes, sending his heart racing. 
</p><p>
“No one’s hurt,” she whimpered, sniffling as she tried to clear her running nose and wipe the tears from her cheeks. “I’m safe, I’m at home. But I…I fucked up so bad, Jess.” <i>That</i> woke Jess right up. Rory Gilmore, who was practically an angel, had never said a bad word in her life, as far as he knew. If she was jumping right past the mildly bad words and going straight for the heavy hitters, something serious must have happened. 
</p><p>
“I’m on my way,” Jess told her, kicking the sheet away. He had already pulled on one sock, and his last clean shirt was hanging from a randomly placed towel bar within arm’s reach of his mattress. “Tell me where you are, and just stay put. I can be there in an hour and twenty.” <i>Less, but I shouldn’t say that,</i> he thought to himself. Gypsy had fixed up his ’69 Ambassador well enough that he could push the speed limit and make it there in an hour. It might mean that he would need her to repair it again, but that was an issue for another time. 
</p><p>
“I’m at home,” she mumbled just loud enough for Jess to hear. “God, I’m so stupid.” As upset as Jess had been with Rory in the last 24 hours, there was nothing he wanted more than to console her. Why she had called him – who she had rejected so harshly just a day ago – he wasn’t quite sure, but his own comfort and pride were at the back of his mind. Rory needed him, and that was that. 
</p><p>
“Can you tell me what happened?” Jess asked cautiously. This only made matters worse, because Rory started to cry even harder. Her breath came in wet, heaving gasps. “Babe, I need you to take some deep breaths,” he instructed, raising his voice to catch her attention. He held his cellphone to his ear with his shoulder as he pulled on a pair of jeans and did up his belt. Rory continued to sob, but by the time Jess had stepped into his boots, ensured his keys were in his pocket, and tore down the staircase, her breathing had evened out some.
</p><p>
“Okay, I’m just walking out of my building right now,” Jess narrated, “and my car is parked right outside the door.” Rory heard the roar of his engine turning over, the quiet hum of the radio, and a minute later, the familiar <i>click</i> of his lighter. 
</p><p>
“Are you smoking?” she murmured. Crying had exhausted her past the point of caring enough to chastise him, but she wanted to know nonetheless.
</p><p>
“I won’t do it in Stars Hollow, I promise,” he assured her. He checked over his left shoulder before angling his old rust bucket out of the parking lane, and before the next bout of traffic could catch up, he stepped on the gas and headed for the freeway.
</p><p>
“I’m probably costing you a fortune by keeping you on the phone,” Rory speculated listlessly. She was lying on the floor beside her bed, curled up in the fetal position with her knobby knees pulled tight against her chest. She hadn’t changed out of the pink dress she’d worn to the opening of the Dragonfly, nor had she brushed her hair since her encounter with Dean earlier that evening. 
</p><p>
“I don’t mind, Jess said, brushing off her concern. “Is your mom home?”
</p><p>
“No, she went back to the inn an hour ago. It’s the opening night,” Rory reminded him. “Luke’s there, too.” 
</p><p>
<i>So she’s at home, alone,</i> Jess thought, frowning. There wasn’t much trouble to get into there. Rory didn’t sound drunk, and nothing she and Lorelai owned was worth enough to be that upset about if it were to be accidentally knocked over. As he continued to think through the possible causes of her despair, a dark thought hovered at the back of his mind. <i>Something happened with Dean.</i> 
</p><p>
“Rory, maybe you’d feel better if you went and had a shower or a bath,” Jess suggested gently. “What d’you think about trying that?” 
</p><p>
“Yeah, maybe,” she acquiesced. “Might be good to put my PJs on, too.”
</p><p>
“Okay, so you go have a bath,” he instructed, “and then get ready for bed. By the time you’ve tucked yourself in, I’ll be there.” Someone driving a jalopy even older than his was creeping along at turtle-speed up ahead, so Jess shifted into the next lane and passed the old vehicle. Before he could hang up, he had one more thing to say to Rory.
</p><p>
“Gilmore, do one more thing for me, okay?” he asked, smiling.
</p><p>
“And what might that be?”
</p><p>
“Unlock your window.”
</p><p>
* * * * *
</p><p>
To avoid the awkwardness of having to explain his return to Luke, Jess was forced to park his car on some random street on the opposite side of town, where he then threw a blue winter tarp over top. It had been something he’d scored during his time at Wal-Mart, but because his car had mysteriously disappeared before his second departure from Stars Hollow, Jess hadn’t had a reason to use it yet. On foot, he jogged the mile or so he had parked from the Gilmores’ house, and was pleased to see that Lorelai’s Jeep was nowhere to be seen. The only thing worse than having to explain his presence to Luke would be running into Lorelai on her front porch; he couldn’t think up any lie convincing enough to pull the wool over her eyes. 
</p><p>
The glow of Rory’s bedside lamp shone through the sheer lace curtains over her window, and when Jess was close enough to see within, he saw that Rory was standing in her bathrobe beside her closet. He turned away and moved to lean over the railing, not wanting to invade her privacy as she dressed. In the past, he would have jumped at such an opportunity. Now, though, his love for her precluded his wish to act on his hormonally driven urges. 
</p><p>
After a few minutes had passed, Jess took a quick peek into her room again, and found it empty. She might have gone to grab a snack, or use the bathroom. He jumped on the opportunity immediately, not wanting to scare her by being halfway through the window when she returned. Jess shimmied the window’s sash up as high as it would go, removed his shoes so as not to get anything dirty, parted the curtains, and hoisted himself up through the opening.
</p><p>
His shoes he tucked beneath Rory’s bed, where Lorelai wouldn’t be likely to see them if he had to make a quick exit, and seating himself on the edge of her desk. Her sheets were rumpled up and had been kicked to the end of her bed, he noticed. The toilet upstairs flushed, alerting him to Rory’s whereabouts. In order not to scare her, he began softly humming, and hoped that the sound would carry down the hall just loud enough that she would hear him as she approached. The slap of her footsteps against the hardwood floor grew louder and then stopped as Rory stood in the doorway of her bedroom.
</p><p>
“You came,” she whispered, her eyes welling up with tears at the sight of his slim frame leaned up against her desk. “I—you drove all the way from the city?”
</p><p>
“You called, I answered,” Jess said simply. He quickly scanned her from head to toe, but didn’t note any bruises or other signs of injury standing out against her pale, creamy skin. He probably wouldn’t have to commit murder tonight, he thought with relief. Rory was in shorts and a t-shirt, and even though the house seemed warm enough to him, he noted goosebumps standing out on her arms and thighs.
</p><p>
“Let’s get you tucked in,” he smiled, holding out a hand towards her bed. The colour drained from Rory’s cheeks; there was no way she was getting anywhere near that bed tonight, or any night soon.
</p><p>
“I can’t,” she choked out. “Please, let’s go somewhere else.”
</p><p>
“Where?” Jess asked, crossing the room in two strides so that he was standing right in front of her. “Should we try the sofa, maybe?”
</p><p>
“I don’t think…I don’t think I can stay here,” she murmured. Silently, hot tears rolled down her cheeks and splashed against the hardwood. Jess wiped their trails away with the pad of his thumb, but they kept coming. “I have to go.”
</p><p>
“Go where, Rory?” Jess asked desperately. “Please, talk to me. I want to help you, but I can’t do anything if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.” Rory met his gaze, and at the thought of telling Jess about her indiscretion with Dean, she felt her heart skip a beat. He wouldn’t react well, she knew. He might say nothing and walk out, or maybe put a hole through the drywall. His feelings were no secret to her, and the very thought of crushing him with the truth – that she had slept with Dean – made her nauseous. 
</p><p>
“I had a fight with my mom,” was all she could come up with.
</p><p>
“Because of Dean,” he guessed. Somehow, Jess maintained a stoic expression, even though he felt his blood boiling at the very idea of Dean Forester putting his hands on Rory. As her lower lip began to tremble, Jess reached out and pulled her against his chest, where he held her tightly as she wept. When her shoulders ceased their shaking and he released his hold on her, the front of Jess’s t-shirt was wet with tears and snot.
</p><p>
“I’m so sorry, Jess,” Rory sniffed miserably. “I fucked up.” 
</p><p>
“Pack a bag with anything you’ll need for the next few days: books, clothes, toothbrush - and drop it outside the window,” he told her brusquely, purposely ignoring her admission and apology. If he allowed himself to dwell on it, he wouldn’t make it out of Stars Hollow tonight without breaking Dean Forester’s jaw. “Then write your mom a note and leave it where she’ll find it; tell her you’re safe, and that you’ll be home soon. You’ve gone to stay with a friend from Yale for a few days.” 
</p><p>
“Where are we going?” Rory dared to ask. Jess slipped past her and retrieved his shoes from beneath her bed, which he tossed out the window just as he had done on his way in. He glanced back at her once before clambering back out into the night, his expression impassive. 
</p><p>
“New York.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Baby, Come On</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Rory spends her first day in New York alone in Jess's apartment.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Didn't edit this because I'm at 1%!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Rory’s eyes fluttered open halfway through the afternoon, she found herself staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling. The mattress beneath her didn’t provide much padding; even without moving, she could tell that her back would be aching for the better part of a day. The sight of a large, brown water stain on the plaster ceiling above her head brought memories from the night before racing back: Dean had come over, they had fallen into bed together, and had been discovered by Lorelai. Rory and her mother had argued bitterly, with no resolution other than Lorelai stomping out of the house angrily and returning to the inn for the night. Rory had cried for hours, and without much thought, had called Jess in a desperate attempt to feel <i>something</i>. Jess had driven from New York, made her pack a bag, and drove her all the way back to the city in the same night.</p><p>
She sat up slowly and glanced around the illuminated room for the first time. Last night, it had been pitch-black but for a sliver of moonlight shining through the apartment’s single dirty window; now she could see just what she’d walked into. Three corners of the studio apartment served as ‘bedrooms’, each with a mattress tucked up against the wall. The fourth corner housed a single kitchen counter, an oven, and an ancient orange fridge. Above the counter, dishes and non-perishables were stored in forward-facing milk crates stacked on a lopsided plywood shelf.
A few feet from the end of Jess’s bed was a table that had seen better days; Rory wouldn’t have been surprised to find out it had been fished out of a dumpster. A stack of empty takeout boxes served as its centrepiece, and a roughly cut block of wood was tucked beneath one of the table’s legs to prevent it from wobbling. Scattered on the floor around the table were sweaters, dirty socks, and various other unclaimed clothing items. Never in her life had Rory seen such a disaster – not even when Jess had first moved into the apartment above the diner. 
</p><p>
Jess’s corner of the room was by far the tidiest. His few worldly possessions were stacked in cardboard boxes that had the top four folding panels removed for easy access. The box with the word ‘BOOKS’ scrawled across the front in thick permanent marker was nearly full to the top with second-hand paperbacks, which Rory was very interested to look through. Beside that was a box containing folded socks, shirts, and underwear, some of which had seen better days. The third and last box held a variety of foodstuffs, including packages of dried ramen, cans of soup, and a few sweet treats in saran wrap that Jess must have brought back at Luke’s behest. 
</p><p>
Rory saw a note taped to the wall above the bed with her name written in Jess’s messy handwriting.
</p><p>
<i>Rory</i>,<br/>
<i>I’ll be home from work around 5:00. Help yourself to books and food. My spare key is in the pocket of your duffel bag, in case you want to go out for a walk. Lock up if you leave the apartment, and don’t open the door for anyone. I have my phone with me, call if you need.</i><br/>
<i>J</i>
</p><p>
	Glancing at her watch, Rory was unsurprised to see that she had slept the entire morning away; late nights tended not to agree with her physiological need to sleep at least 8 hours. She estimated that if she were to hop in the shower now, take her time to scrub away any and all traces of having been with Dean the night prior, and get dressed, she would be able to avoid the noon-hour lunch rush. She had about five hours to kill until Jess would be home, but no idea when his roommates might return. Showering now seemed like the best option.
</p><p>
	The water pressure wasn’t great, and the temperature fluctuated between slightly too warm and ice-cold every time someone in the building flushed a toilet, so Rory didn’t spend any longer than she needed to in the small shower stall. Jess had been so kind as to set out a clean towel for her, and had his name written in permanent marker on his shampoo and conditioner bottles; her hair would hold onto the scent of his shampoo for the next day or two. Whenever she caught a whiff of it, she would be transported back to her senior year – to when Jess would lie curled up beside her on the couch in Luke’s apartment, his head on her chest as they watched sitcom reruns.
</p><p>
	Once she was dressed, and had brushed her teeth and hair, Rory returned to the main room of the apartment. Now that she was awake and alert, she noticed the blanket and pillow laid out beside Jess’s mattress where he must have kipped for the night. She felt a twinge in her heart at knowing that Jess hadn’t wanted to – or felt comfortable, maybe – tucking himself beside her on his bed. They could have made it work. He had been a gentleman, though, as always, and let her take the mattress. 
</p><p>
Rory made the bed as best she could, and disassembled Jess’s makeshift floor mat in the process. Tonight, she decided, she would insist that Jess make use of the bed as well. It was only fair, after all; this was <i>his</i> apartment. Once she was satisfied with her handiwork, she unpacked the box of books she had been eyeing earlier to see what treasures Jess had acquired over the last year. He had all the classics from his favourite authors – Kerouac, Bukowski, Hemingway – but also a surprising number of books that made her smile when she imagined him reading them on the subway or in Washington Square Park. 
</p><p>
Rory’s cellphone began to buzz in her pocket. She knew before even checking the caller ID that she wasn’t going to answer. If Lorelai had come back from the inn, she would have seen the note Rory left for her beside the cordless phone. If it was Dean…well, she didn’t want to think about that prospect. He was married whether he liked it or not, and while Rory had been able to look past it in the moment, she was consumed by the guilt of having been the ‘other woman’. If anyone else was calling, they could leave a message, and she’d get back to them when she worked up the courage to check her voicemail.
</p><p>
Just as Jess had asked, Rory took his spare key and locked the apartment – unit ‘F’, she noted – on her way out. A city as big as New York was the opposite of Stars Hollow in terms of safety, so leaving the door open was as good as an open invitation to steal what few possessions Jess and his roommates owned. Down the hall, Rory could hear a couple arguing loudly in Spanish. The honking of horns and bustle of traffic had been audible from within the apartment, but now that she could see out into the street through the window of the building’s entrance, Rory truly felt that she had entered another world. 
</p><p>
When she stepped out onto the sidewalk, Rory got her first look at South Bronx, one of the few neighbourhoods that a young man like Jess – one who hadn’t graduated high school – could afford to live. Most of the nearby buildings were apartment blocks with the same weather worn bricks and rusted iron fire escapes that Jess’s building had. The afternoon air was cool, making Rory glad to have borrowed the extra leather jacket Jess had tucked away in one of his cardboard ‘drawers’. 
</p><p>
Being unfamiliar with the neighbourhood, she elected to people-watch for a minute or two, and decide based on the foot traffic which direction to head off in search of lunch. She ended up trailing behind a group of African American girls that looked to be around her age; the girls were laughing and joking amongst themselves, which reminded her of her own friends – Lane and Paris especially. She made it only a block before she was confronted by several possible options for lunch: a hot dog stand like the one Jess had insisted on stopping at when she had visited him in New York; a restaurant whose awning read ‘Chinese-Indian Fyuzhun’ (<i>interesting spelling,</i> Rory mused); and a diner reminiscent of Luke’s, whose lunch specials were advertised by a sandwich board-wearing teen. 
</p><p>
“So many choices,” Rory murmured to herself, “but so little time before I starve to death.” In the end, she decided to brave the ‘Fyuzhun’ restaurant, and came out with takeout containers identical to those in the trashcan of Jess’s apartment. Clearly, this was a popular place amongst him and his roommates. She had ordered what she felt was a good variety, and which would be good for leftovers if Jess was starving upon his return from his courier job.
</p><p>
Rory thought for a moment about finding a place outdoors to sit down and eat, but because she wasn’t familiar with the area, she decided to wait for Jess to be around before she did any exploring. When she made in back to the apartment block, a young woman was propping the door open with her foot as she struggled to lift the wheels of her stroller over the step and into the building. Rory hurried forward to grab the door, earning an appreciative smile from the woman in distress. In her stroller was a smiley little boy with frizzy cornrows, who looked to be about two years old. He stared up at Rory with large, thoughtful eyes that implored her to say something.
</p><p>
“Hi there,” Rory cooed, giving him a little wave. The boy’s smile grew even bigger, and he waved both his hands back and forth in greeting. 
</p><p>
“Sorry, I don’t think I’ve seen you around before,” his mother spoke, regarding Rory curiously. “Did you just move in?” Now that she looked closer, Rory realized that the woman was actually more of a girl; she couldn’t be older than 15 or 16.
</p><p>
“Oh, I’m just visiting a friend for a few days,” Rory explained, gesturing towards unit ‘F’. “Classes just finished, so he invited me to come see his place, and check out the city.”
</p><p>
“Well, this certainly ain’t no five-star hotel,” the girl joked, “but I’m sure it’ll work for a few days.” She reached down and squeezed her son’s hand gently, but he continued to watch Rory with wide eyes. “I’m Angela, and this is my little guy, Darius. We just live at the end of the hall in ‘G’.”
</p><p>
“I’m Rory. Nice to meet you,” Rory said, forgoing a formal handshake in favour of a smile. “My friend Jess and his roommates live right across the hall; I hope they’ve been behaving themselves and keeping the noise down at night.” Angela let out a hearty laugh.
</p><p>
“Oh, those boys barely make a peep,” she assured Rory. “They’re usually either at work or sleeping. Don’t have no complaints about them.” Jess had mentioned that he was picking up every shift he could just so he could put some money aside, and Rory knew that his job was pretty strenuous. He was riding his bike 60 miles a day or more, picking up and delivering packages of all shapes and sizes. Even though they hadn’t made it to the city until after 2:00 that morning, Jess had been out of the apartment at 7:00 to begin his shift. 
</p><p>
Just then, the door to Angela’s apartment opened, and a young man ducked his head out into the hallway.
</p><p>
“Hey, baby,” he called to her.  “Thought I heard your voice.”
</p><p>
“I’ll be in right away,” Angela told him. At the sound of his father’s voice, Darius wiggled his way out of the stroller and raced off down the hall, where he was received with open arms. “I should go, but it was nice to meet you, Rory,” Angela said apologetically. “Maybe I’ll see you around again.”
</p><p>
“You know where to find me,” Rory smiled. “Have a nice afternoon.” Rory waited for Angela to manoeuvre her stroller down the narrow hall and into her apartment before making any attempts to get into Jess’s place. She locked the door behind her, as Jess had instructed, and pushed aside some of the dirty dishes on the wobbly dining table to make room for her takeout bag. She felt the temperature of her food through the takeout boxes it was held within, and decided that it would still be warm enough to eat if she took just a few minutes to wash up the boys’ breakfast dishes.
</p><p>
* * * * *
</p><p>
When Jess returned from work, wheeling his bicycle beside him, he found Rory exactly as he’d expected to: laid out across his mattress with her nose in a book. She finished her paragraph before setting her book aside, and looked up to see her sweat-soaked friend collapse into a chair at the table.
</p><p>
“Long day?” she asked, regarding him with sympathetic eyes. 
</p><p>
“Brutal,” Jess groaned, rubbing his thighs and in hopes of preventing permanent loss of sensation. “I swear, every delivery required me to cross a hundred-mile bridge.” Rory swung her legs over the edge of the mattress, wanting to join Jess at the table, but he held out a hand in warning.
</p><p>
“I smell <i>so</i> bad right now,” he cautioned. “Maybe just wait until I’ve showered before you get any closer.” Rory rolled her eyes, but agreed to hold off for a few minutes. Jess proceeded to strip his shirt and shorts off and lay them over the backs of two chairs to dry, as was his routine; the fact that Rory was six feet away seemed to have slipped his mind. Rory averted her gaze when she realized what he was doing, but it was too late. She caught a glimpse of his bare legs, which were nicely toned from all the biking Jess did for work. 
</p><p>
“There’s curry in the fridge if you’re hungry,” Rory announced tensely. The strain in her voice caught Jess’s attention, and as he glanced over to check on her, he realized his mistake.
</p><p>
“Oh, shit,” he apologized, making a dash for the bathroom. “Fuck. Sorry, Rory, I wasn’t thinking. Not used to having girls here, obviously.” Rory concentrated her thoughts on the chapter she had left off on in her book, ignoring the flutter in her belly brought on by seeing Jess half-naked. 
</p><p>
“It’s fine,” she assured him, “I closed my eyes. Didn’t see anything exciting, so don’t worry.” Jess continued mumbling to himself about his stupidity, which was eventually drowned out by the splash of running water. Rory collapsed forward and pressed her burning cheeks into Jess’s mattress. <i>What the hell is wrong with me?</i> she demanded of herself. <i>First I’m daydreaming about Dean, and now Jess? I’ve got to get a grip.</i> 
</p><p>
If Paris were here, Rory knew she would rationalize her feelings with some anecdote about animal behaviour, and end with a crass remark about how Rory just needed to get laid once in a while. <i>I did exactly that, and look where it got me,</i> she thought angrily. <i>The one time I do what Paris says, to “follow my instincts” or whatever, I end up sleeping with my married ex-boyfriend in my childhood bedroom.</i> She continued to silently chastise herself for her immature decisions until Jess had finished his shower. She was drawn back to reality by the sound of Jess shouting her name.
</p><p>
“Hey, uh, Rory?” he called out through the closed bathroom door. “I forgot to grab clean clothes. Could you…” He trailed off, realizing he didn’t have a solution for his predicament. Either he could ask her to leave some clothes outside the bathroom door, which would involve touching his (clean) underwear, or he could ask her to close her eyes while he ran out and grabbed clothes himself.
</p><p>
“Just come out and get dressed,” Rory told him. “We’re both adults, Jess.” She let out a long sigh, knowing that she was going to be tempted to sneak a peek. Jess Mariano had always been easy on the eyes, but he had really filled out in the last year; she had noticed it when he had showed up at her house the night before. Timidly, Jess exited the bathroom, walked over to where Rory was seated on his mattress, and knelt down beside the box containing his clothes. 
</p><p>
“I’m sorry,” Jess repeated for what felt to Rory like the hundredth time. He clutched his towel tightly at his waist and frantically dug through his clothes box in search of the outfit he wanted.
</p><p>
“Hey, cut it out,” Rory insisted, reaching out and setting a hand against Jess’s bare shoulder blade as he crouched beside her. Droplets of water from his wet hair dripped down his back. “This is your apartment, and you’re allowed to wear as much or as little as you want here. I’m just here taking up space and making things difficult. Please, don’t mind me at all.” He opened his mouth to protest, but the look of consternation on Rory’s face forced him to stay silent.
</p><p>
He returned to the bathroom to towel-dry his hair and get dressed, leaving Rory to perseverate alone. She decided that the most useful thing to do that would keep her mind busy was to warm up a plate for Jess. She had plenty of leftover rice, and enough chicken curry for Jess to have a hearty serving. When she went to set the cook-time on the microwave, she was frustrated to discover that some of the symbols had worn right off the buttons. The keypad wasn’t configured in the same way as her microwave at home, so it was anyone’s guess whether she was about to get this right or not. Making her best effort, Rory stuck the plate in, clicked a few buttons (noticing that the timer display was broken as well), and waited to hear the crackling of hot food that would indicate the appliance was working properly. 
</p><p>
Jess emerged from the bathroom in a Nirvana t-shirt and dark-wash jeans. Rory had always liked that he dressed for comfort instead of style. He sidled up beside her at the counter and set his hand lightly against the middle of her back. She glanced up and felt her heart flutter at the sight of the lopsided grin she knew so well.
</p><p>
“You look happy,” she observed, gently bumping her hip against his. Jess wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close. Instead of saying what he was thinking – that he loved her, and was so glad she was here – Jess decided to allow his actions to speak for him. 
</p><p>
* * * * *
</p><p>
“Are you going to get that eventually?” Jess inquired, frowning as Rory sent her incoming call straight to voicemail for the umpteenth time that evening; she had been ignoring the frequent beeping of her pager as well.
</p><p>
“I’ll check my voicemail tomorrow,” she said, shrugging. “I want to give it a day or two to give things a chance to blow over.” Though she was doing her best to appear indifferent, Jess could see her becoming more and more anxious with each subsequent call. She had chewed bits of skin from her bottom lip until it bled, and her focus on the novel she was reading was nonexistent. He wanted her to get it over with, to tell Lorelai that she would be away for a few days, but all he could do was offer support. This was something she had to do on her own.
</p><p>
Jess left Rory alone in the apartment for a minute when he went to collect the mail from his box in the front entryway. As he sorted through the bills, organizing them by recipient, his cellphone began to buzz in his pocket. The number for the diner flashed across the screen, which spelled out trouble for both him and Rory.
</p><p>
“Yeah?” Jess answered, tucking the phone between his cheek and his shoulder so as to continue sorting his mail. 
</p><p>
“Are you out of your mind?” Luke hollered, his volume nearly causing Jess to drop his phone. “In what world did it seem like a good idea to you to take Rory into the city? And, why the hell isn’t she answering her cellphone? Her mother is worried sick, Jess.” Leave it to Luke to know exactly where to call.
</p><p>
“She left Lorelai a note saying she was staying with a friend,” Jess protested indignantly. “Rory is 19 years old, and can make her own decisions about where she spends her time. I’m sorry if Lorelai can’t accept that.” Unfortunately for Jess, this wasn’t the answer Luke was interested in hearing.
</p><p>
“Here’s what’s going to happen, Jess,” Luke instructed sternly. “You’re going to help Rory pack her bag, and then the two of you are going to drive straight back to Stars Hollow. <i>Tonight.</i>” 
</p><p>
“That’s not gonna happen,” Jess dismissed his uncle’s command in a low voice. “Rory needed to get the hell out of that godforsaken town, and now she needs some time to recover before she goes back home.” 
</p><p>
“Recover from what?” Luke shouted, being so polite as to hold the phone a little further from his face this time as he raised his voice. “She’s supposed to go to Europe with her grandmother in less than a week! There’ll be plenty of time for her to ‘recover’ when she’s lounging on some beach in Spain.” 
</p><p>
“She and Lorelai got into a big argument last night, and she just wanted a chance to cool off for a few days,” Jess said tersely. He needed to be cautious in what he shared with Luke, so as not to betray Rory’s confidence. “She’ll be home in time for Europe, so you can tell your girlfriend not to get her panties in a knot.” Luke growled in response to Jess’s dig, but chose not to engage him further on the subject of his and Lorelai’s complicated friendship. 
</p><p>
“If nothing else, just get her to call Lorelai and tell her she survived the drive,” Luke requested, speaking evenly so as to maintain his composure. “Your car isn’t particularly reliable, plus you and Rory have a history of getting into trouble as far as vehicles are concerned.”
</p><p>
“I’ll pass the message along, but I can’t guarantee anything,” Jess said. “You know how stubborn these Gilmore girls can be.” His uncle snorted; he knew exactly what Jess was talking about. 
</p><p>
“Impossible, sometimes,” Luke grumbled. His tone had softened significantly since the beginning of their conversation, which left Jess feeling much better. It wouldn’t be out of character for Luke to drop everything at the diner and drive two hours if it would make Lorelai happy, and this was just the sort of situation for which she would have no problem convincing him to come to her aid. 
</p><p>
“Tell Lorelai that Rory is safe, and has money for food,” Jess requested. “Oh, and in case she decides it’s any of her damn business, there’s nothing going on between Rory and I. No need to worry about any hanky-panky happening; we’re just friends.” 
</p><p>
“Yeah, right—”
</p><p>
“Luke, I’m serious,” Jess snapped. “She just needed a friend who could help her get out of town for a few days, and I happened to fit the bill.” The sound of rushing blood filled Jess’s ears, signalling to him that he needed to take things down a notch. The therapist he had visited upon his return to New York had insisted that he work harder to recognize when his emotions were getting out of hand, especially when it came to anger. He didn’t want to be the kind of man that screamed in peoples’ faces when he got upset; that was Liz’s thing, and he wanted no part in it.
</p><p>
Luke was silent for so long that Jess began to wonder whether the connection had been dropped. Cellphones were very handy, he had to agree, but they weren’t nearly as reliable as a landline. Finally, his uncle let out a long sigh, having decided that arguing with Jess wouldn’t do any good. It was in the hands of the two young adults now to make a wise decision about what the next few days would look like. 
</p><p>
“I know you want what’s best for her,” Luke said resignedly. “Please get her to call Lorelai, and stay out of trouble, the both of you. He offered a quick “bye” before hanging up, leaving Jess to ponder his options as he walked back down the hall to his apartment.
</p><p>
“Anything good come in the mail?” Rory inquired as he closed the door behind himself. “National Geographic, or some poetry lit mag, maybe?”
</p><p>
“Nah, just bills,” Jess told her. He deposited a stack of envelopes onto the mattress of both his roommates and tossed his own pile into the cardboard box that held his clothes. Jess took a seat beside Rory on the mattress and quietly debated how he should broach the subject of Luke’s call with her. Before he could do so, however, Rory’s phone rang <i>yet again</i>, and by now she had run out of patience.
</p><p>
“Mom, stop calling me every 30 seconds,” she hissed. “Leaving me six messages an hour isn’t helping anything. I’m safe, and I’ve got food and a place to stay, so just chill out, okay?” Rory’s tone was abrasive, but thankfully, Lorelai chose to back off and give her some space, as she was requesting.
</p><p>
When Rory ended her call, she tossed her phone to the end of the mattress, wanting it to be far out of her reach. She wouldn’t be taking answering anymore unless absolutely necessary. Scooting to one side of the lumpy mattress, Rory invited Jess to move closer and make himself comfortable. 
</p><p>
“Well, dodger, it’s getting late,” Rory said, stifling a yawn, “and I’m still pretty tired after all that’s been happening with the inn this week. Would you mind if I called it a night?”
</p><p>
“No problem,” Jess assured her. “Let me just grab my blanket and a pillow so I can set up my bed.” Rory smacked at his hand when he reached for the blanket she was using, surprising Jess. “What, do you want me to go without a blanket or something?”
</p><p>
“Sleep beside me tonight,” Rory requested, doing her best to imitate a sad puppy with the pout she was giving him. “The floor can’t be comfortable, and there’s plenty of room for the two of us on this mattress.” As much as that idea appealed to Jess, he felt obligated to decline for Rory’s sake. Knowing himself (and her, too), Jess knew that if they were to sleep side-by-side, they would inevitably wake up in the morning in a tangle of limbs. Both he and Rory had a tendency to wrap themselves around whatever object or person they shared a sleeping space with, and he didn’t want to create any uncomfortable situations.
</p><p>
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jess said plainly. “It’s not that I don’t trust myself, or you, but…”
</p><p>
“But we have a history of letting things get out of hand when we get too close,” Rory finished for him. “That was when we were in high school, Jess.”
</p><p>
“Rory, I really care about you, and I don’t want you to feel like I’m taking advantage of you, or this situation,” Jess blurted out. Rory was surprised by his sudden outburst, but not upset. His concern was sweet, and she appreciated that he was looking out for her.
</p><p>
“Well, if you won’t share the mattress, will you at least sit beside me and read out loud until I fall asleep?” she asked hopefully. “You can pick the book, and I won’t even complain if it’s Hemingway.” 
</p><p>
“Deal,” Jess agreed, reaching over her to grab a book from the top of his box. He shifted closer to Rory, who leaned her head against his chest. One arm went around her shoulders, and his other was occupied by holding the book he had chosen, a poetry anthology he’d acquired at a used book store in the last week or so.
</p><p>
As he read, both Jess and Rory grew sleepier. He hadn’t even made it through the first section of the book before Rory’s breathing took on the slow, deep characteristics of sleep. Jess had felt exhausted after returning from work, but now he felt an ache in his bones that spoke of a deeper exhaustion. Eventually, the book fell out of his hand, landing open on the floor, and he slipped down the mattress beside Rory. Subconsciously, she sensed his warmth, and she wiggled backwards until her back was pressed against his chest. Defeated by his own fatigue, Jess wrapped an arm around Rory’s waist and nuzzled his face into her hair. <i>I could get used to this,</i> he thought as his eyes fluttered shut for the night.</p>
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